Anneliese was in the SCN for 27 days, i had mixed experiences-i had one nurse, Monique, who was my saviour, but then i had others who would tell me off, for even picking my own baby up!! Sometimes i wonder if she should have stayed in hossy a little longer... 3 weeks after coming home she went back in for 2 week.

We had this one nurse who I swear was just stupid *roll eyes* One night my mum and I went to see Isaac and he started having breathing issues and was turning blue and all that fun stuff. It wasn't until my husband was called up that we realised the stupid nurse had put tape over his nose when she re did his feeding tube *duh* talk about scary.. I hated knowing she was watching him that night.. I hardly slept and when I was awake I was in the nursery with him

We had some fabulous nurses though and they remembered us when Jacob ended up in there as well..

I felt like that as well even though it was just over 2 weeks. When Isaac went back into hospital at 7 weeks I was disappointed he couldn't go back in there,, The night nurse on the childrens ward was so mean I ended up in tears..

did you stay with her when she had to go back? I was breastfeeding and pumping so I asked to stay and we were bottle feeding with expressed milk over night so when I asked for a bottle around 10pm that night she started in at me saying she thought I was breastfeeding and thats why I was ALLOWED to stay.. Isaac was only 7 weeks old I wasn't going to be leaving him there without myself or my husband. She was not nice thats for sure and made it seem like a huge chore to get the bottle ready for me.. We weren't allowed to do it ourselves *roll eyes*

I couldnt stay with Anneliese when she went back as she was in the ICU and NICU and only patients can stay in there. When she went back into the ward, i had 2 boys i had to be at home with, so i didnt get to stay with her. I only stay in the hospital when my 3yo has asthma attacks, as otherwise he gets too scared.

Nic, why did Isaac go back in?? Anneliese started with bronchiolitis and apnoea, then got pneumonia.

Isaac went back due to more seizure activity and a few more breathing episodes and he used to choke in his sleep.. After 2 nights we were given some thinckener to put in his bottles of EBM and he never looked back.. He was on anti seizure medication till 5.5 months and then he was fine..

I'm soooo glad I found this thread. It has made me feel better to read that other people have had similar experiences with C-sections.

My last was 8 years ago, and the memory of it stills haunts me, and has made me anxious about the one I'm having this time round. I went into labour with Nathan at 36weeks while his dad was on night shift, and I was in complete denial - he was booked in for elective c-section at 38 weeks, so I was no - this is happening now. Up until 4.30am, when I finally rang my mum, I paced around the house in pain...wondering if this was labour! (I hadn't experienced itwith my first, so I had no point of reference) She arrived 15 mins later, asking me about the pain, and she was pretty sure I was in labour, so I rang the hospital, and they told me to come in - only problem was that "the father" wasn't home from work yet. So I rang him - for him to say well I finish in an hour (6.00am) so will be home by 7.00am! (if you haven't figured it out yet - we are no longer together!) Got to the hospital finally about 7.30am - I'm still in denial though and have apologised all the way to the hospital. but thats another story... Was examined by the m/w - and yes was in labour - but only dilated 1cm. They gave my pethadine, and would be back in 4 hours to see if it had stopped it. It didn't. they examined me again - and I had dilated to 3 cm. I had been telling them that I had lots of scar pain from my previous c-section, both when I arrived, and at my previous antenatal visit 3 days before. because things hadn't stopped, and I was still in significant pain, they were concerend about placenta abruption they took me to theatre (had a spinal block - isn't that fun when you are in labour???? bend forward - tell me when your having a contraction - stay still...far out)

From once they decided to go ahead to when Nathan arrived it all happen so fast. I saw him for a couple of minutes, then they took him to special care, and me to recovery. While I was in recovery, his dad came and told me that he had gone into respiratory distress, and was on oxygen in a humidicrib. The midwifes in Special care had taken a polaroid of him for me. after two hours in recovery, I was taken to the ward, and all I wanted to do was see my little boy. well the midwife assigned to look after me couldn't have organised a P*** up in a pub! when I asked to be taken down to special care I was told she was too busy, and that there were no wards men availabe to wheel the bed down. I still hadn't got sensation back in my legs - otherwise there would have been no stopping me. I was drugged to the eyeballs, distressed that I couldn't see my son, who when I had seen briefly was fine, and now my little girl was coming into meet her baby brother, and I wasn't going to even be able to witness that. Then a SC midwife came in and told me that Nat's blood sugar was dropping and that they needed to feed him. Well I was breastfeeding. I had no problems with my daughter and I had every intention of doing it again. So I told her that. She said that I wouldn't have enough yet to give him, that they needed to give him formula. I told her that what ever I could get off my breasts they could mix in with the formula, I was starting the process now. (I think by this stage I was feeling extremely agaitated, and sick of being pushed around by other people) I still hadn't seen nathan, and was holding on tight to that photo! The midwife proceeded to tell me that in China, women don't even worry about giving their babies the colostrum... well I'm not in china!! So I won that small battle, and expressed off the colostrum, and at least knew that my supply had been started to be stimulated.

10 hours later, Nathan was brought to me for his first feed with me, and my first cuddle. He has a nasal gastric tube in. It was about 12.30am, I was extremely tired, and emotional, and distressed, and overwhelmed. By early the next morning, there was no stopping me! as soon as they would let me out of bed, I was up and in the shower, and down to the SCU, and stayed there most of time, until they let him come with me to my room.

When I booked into have this bub, I was pleased to see that the protocol had changed from when I had Nathan (it is the same hospital), and that babies go with their mothers unless they have something wrong with them, to recovery, and that they are given the opportunity to feed within the first half hour of being born. So up until I was 28 weeks my angst and anxiety about the birth was allievated. But I have developed Gestational Diabetes during this pregnancy, so everything changes. The little man will go straight to SCU, to have blood sugar level monitored, but I won't be in recovery as long (unless there is excessive bleeding they don't keep you in as long now apparently) plus my DH will not let anyone NOT let me see the little man. He'll take me there himself if he has too! So while it isn't what I had hoped for - it will be better then it was last time. Initially when I found out what the protocol for this hospital was for babies born with GD mums, I was disappointed. A very good friend of mine works at a Royal Womens in Brisbane, and their protocol is very different. but knowing that DH will be with the little man, and that he will be far more insistent and supportive then my previous partner has allied some of my fears. And in the end, as long as we are both ok that's all that matters.